[Anglican Devotional 23 May 2023] Topic: Preparations For Building The Temple

TOPIC: Preparations For Building The Temple

READ: 1 Kings 5: 1-18 (KJV)

1 And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David.

2 And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,

3 Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the name of the Lord his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet.

4 But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.

5 And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name.

6 Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants: and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.

7 And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be the Lord this day, which hath given unto David a wise son over this great people.

8 And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have considered the things which thou sentest to me for: and I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir.

9 My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto the sea: and I will convey them by sea in floats unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive them: and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household.

10 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.

11 And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.

12 And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together.

13 And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men.

14 And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses: a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home: and Adoniram was over the levy.

15 And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains;

16 Beside the chief of Solomon’s officers which were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, which ruled over the people that wrought in the work.

17 And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.

18 And Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.

THE MESSAGE:

King David wanted to build a house for the Lord, but God told him that his son Solomon would do it. Note the kind of preparations Solomon made for the temple. He approached Hiram, King of Tyre, to supply timber/logs, using his men who were experts in the field. Solomon in turn, supplied food items to Hiram. These two kings kept the terms of this agreement resulting in a peaceful relationship. How do you handle agreements between you and others? Do you keep or break the terms?

Solomon raised enough foremen for supervision, carriers and stone cutters, who worked in shifts with Hiram’s men (verses 13-14). Proper planning and expert hands were also used to produce quality work. This teaches us to plan our lives properly and to go for expertise above tribal and personal sentiments in choosing workers in the Church and nation. It also teaches us to strive for mastery and excellence in all we do so as to be qualified for selection in future positions. If we fail to prepare adequately, then failure and poor quality services are inevitable. Our God deserves the best. Spiritually, we are God’s temple (2 Corinthians 6:16). How much devotion and preparedness do we give to personal study and meditation on the Bible, Christian programmes, and fasting and prayers to build up our spiritual temple?

PRAYER: Father, grant me the grace to give proper preparation and expertise in anything I set my hands to do. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Henry | Categories: Devotional

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